'Lawn' officer is cleared in Orem

OREM — An Orem police officer who arrested a woman for failing to water her lawn did nothing illegal, according to a report released Monday by the Utah Department of Public Safety.

"Officer (Jim) Flygare did not commit the offense of assault during the arrest of Ms. (Betty) Perry. His actions were necessary to gain physical control of Ms. Perry and to prevent escalation of the incident," according to the report released by Utah DPS.

The incident was the July 6 arrest of Perry, 70, who would not provide Flygare with her name when he asked about her brown lawn at 1568 S. 800 East.

The review by the state was done at the request of Orem Police Department of Public Safety Director Mike Larsen.

However, attorney Gloria Allred, who has been talking with Perry about her legal options regarding the incident, said she doesn't believe the review was fair.

"We do not see this as an independent investigation," Allred told the Deseret Morning News. "We feel that it is clearly biased against Betty, and it appears to us that law enforcement is out to get Betty, a 70-year-old great-grandmother who was simply trying to lead a quiet life."

Both parties agree that Perry didn't want to give her name, but the stories differ as to the incidents surrounding her arrest, which garnered international media attention.

Perry maintains she was firmly grabbed as she tried to walk into the house to call her son, then thrown down to the ground and handcuffed by Flygare.

Flygare, however, said he asked several times for Perry's name so he could write a citation. When she refused, he gently grasped her by the wrist to try to "comfort her and defuse the situation," according to the report.

As she walked back into the house "dragging" him, she tripped and fell against the door jam, which caused the injuries to her face, according to the report.

"The injuries suffered by Ms. Perry were a direct result of her stated intention to not cooperate with police officers," the report continues. "Ms. Perry's non-cooperation was the single most aggravating factor in the escalation of this incident."

Perry was then handcuffed, put in the back of a police car and taken to the Orem holding facility.

Once supervisors learned why she was there, she was released and eventually driven back to her home by another officer.

The report finishes with the determination that Flygare "acted within the scope of his duties and responsibilities and within the scope of state law."